London Grammar and polar explorer honoured

The acclaimed pop group London Grammar and polar explorer Adrian Hayes are among graduates being honoured by The University of Nottingham.

The Alumni Laureate Awards 2014 are a testament to the excellence achieved by graduates in fields including conservation, international cuisine, sports medicine, entertainment, public service and education.

London Grammar, who met at the University, will each receive a Recent Graduate Award, while among those also attending an awards ceremony at University Park on 10 December will be a midwife dedicated to delivering healthcare in overseas disaster zones and an academic whose teaching and research has influenced generations of students and social policy makers.

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Anna Kent will receive a Recent Graduate Award in recognition of her
dedication as a nurse, midwife and educator. She volunteers with Medecins Sans
Frontières in countries including South Sudan, Haiti and Bangladesh. Between
missions, Anna is a specialist midwife caring for mothers with HIV, and also teaches
humanitarian aid to undergraduate nurses, midwives and medics.

Anna said: “It is an absolute honour to be awarded the Recent Graduate
Laureate Award from The
University of Nottingham. Graduating with a Masters Degree in Nursing in
2003 and a Degree in Midwifery in 2010 has enabled me to fulfil my dream of
working with Medecins Sans Frontieres. Support from theSchool of Health
Sciences has enabled me to practice my belief in 'témoignage', or
witnessing and increasing awareness of humanitarian crises. The recognition of
my work, shown by the Alumni Laureate Award, inspires me to
continue my passion within humanitarian medical assistance and my next
overseas placement is due to begin in January 2015.”

Special Excellence Award winner Adrian Hayes graduated with a Masters
in Business Administration in 1994 and went on to become a record-breaking
polar explorer and adventurer, campaigner on sustainability and business coach.
He said: “I am delighted - and frankly flattered - to be receiving the Alumni
Laureate Award from The University of Nottingham. As well as being one of the
happiest periods of my life, the time I spent there undoubtedly shaped my career
immensely - launching me into the whole world of personal, team and leadership
development, which is now my core work outside of my adventures and
expeditions.”

Bill Silburn, who graduated in Social
Administration in 1961, says his Lifetime Achievement Award reflects anassociation with The University of
Nottingham of more than 50 years. He taught social policy to generations of
students, many of whom are now staff in the School of Sociology and
Social Policy, and others who have gone on to be academics, researchers,
and professionals across the world. His most famous research was into poverty
in Nottingham, particularly in the St Ann's community. He said: “I feel very
honoured to have been chosen for a University Lifetime Achievement Award. I
have spent my whole adult life at the University. In 1958 the University was
small with barely 2000 students. They were mainly British and the University
was very self-contained, with little engagement with the local community.

“Now there are 43,000 students, many from every corner of the world,
and all helping to make the University a leading player in the cultural and
intellectual life of both the city and the region. I am sure it will continue
to go from strength to strength and give future generations the rich
opportunities it gave me.”

The Alumni Laureate
Awards were introduced in 2007 to recognise graduates who have
achieved excellence in their chosen field. The awards are decided by panel of
alumni, senior University staff, and Students’ Union representatives from
nominations put forward by fellow alumni and staff.

The University’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor
Sir David Greenaway, said: “I am constantly amazed that graduates from the
University go on to have such a positive impact here in Nottingham and the UK
and across the world. Once again our Alumni Laureates have made their mark in
an exciting and intriguing range of endeavour. What they share is exceptional
dedication and a determination to make real contributions to their fields, while
exhibiting qualities that inspire others and help transform lives.”

The other UK Alumni Laureate winners are:

Recent Graduates
Award

London Grammar –
Dot Major, English 2012; Hannah Reid, Art History and English Studies 2011; Dan
Rothman, Economics and Philosophy 2011. London
Grammar met at the University and their first gig was at the Bag o’ Nails in
Lenton. Their platinum-selling debut album, If
You Wait, was 2013’s iTunes Album of the Year and a Brit Award nomination
followed for Best British Breakthrough Act in 2014. Their single Strong was an Ivor Novello Award winner
in May 2014. They have headlined music festivals and had sell-out shows across
the UK.

Special
Excellence Awards

Eva Carneiro – Medicine
1999Eva
is first-team doctor at Chelsea Football Club and is the first woman to sit on
a team bench at a UEFA Champions League game. After completing her medical training and
surgical primary, Eva studied Sports Medicine in Australia and completed a
Masters Degree in Sports and Exercise Medicine at the University of London. She
was one of the first four appointed to the UK Sports and Exercise Medicine
Specialist Training Programme. She has worked with UK Athletics Disability
Squad, England Women’s Football and with British athletes preparing for the
2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Eva is also a medical advisor for Functional
Electrical Stimulation (FES) Rowing, which will enable individuals with spinal
injuries to take part in exercise.

Nagulendran
Kangayatkarasu – Microbiology 1994; Environment Management 2003
Malaysia’s ‘father of biosafety’ has been instrumental in the development of
conservation in the country. Nagulendran has dedicated 17 years to
environmental and natural resource management, focusing on the fragile balance
of conserving biodiversity while promoting socio-economic development. He has
been responsible for drafting legislation on wildlife conservation and
biosafety and has been instrumental in the adoption of Malaysia’s National
Tiger Conservation Action Plan.

Willin Low – Law
1996After
practising for eight years as a lawyer, Willin opened his first restaurant,
Wild Rocket, in 2005. An acclaimed ambassador for modern Singapore cuisine, he has
been named as one of the world's top 100 emerging culinary stars by his fellow
contemporary chefs. The chef now owns four restaurants in Singapore and
operates a business model that allows employees to invest in company shares to
improve their quality of life.

Lifetime
Achievement Awards

Sir John Sawers
KCMG – Philosophy and Physics 1976 Sir
John Sawers has had a distinguished career in foreign affairs, diplomatic
relations and national security. A former Foreign Affairs Adviser to Tony Blair,
Ambassador to Cairo, Political Director, and Permanent Representative to the
United Nations, Sir John was closely involved in the major foreign policy
issues of the past 20 years, including UK policy on Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and
the Balkans. More recently, he was the Chief of the Secret Intelligence
Service, MI6. The first outsider to be appointed to the Secret Intelligence
Service more than 40 years, he is credited with having modernised the Service
during his five-year term.

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More information is
available from More information and pictures are available from Robert
Ounsworth, Communications Officer, on +44 (0) 115 74 84412,robert.ounsworth@nottingham.ac.ukin the Communications Office at The University of Nottingham, on +44
(0)115 xxx, xxx@nottingham.ac.uk

Our academics can now be
interviewed for broadcast via our Media Hub, which offers a Globelynx fixed
camera and ISDN line facilities at University Park campus. For further
information please contact a member of the Communications team on +44 (0)115
951 5798, email mediahub@nottingham.ac.uk or see the Globelynx website for how to
register for this service.

Notes to editors: The University
of Nottingham has 43,000 students and is ‘the nearest Britain has to a
truly global university, with campuses in China and Malaysia modelled on a
headquarters that is among the most attractive in Britain’ (Times Good
University Guide 2014). It is also the most popular university in the UK
among graduate
employers, in the top 10 for student
experience according to the Times Higher Educationand winner of ‘Research Project of
the Year’ at the THE Awards 2014. It is ranked in the world’s top one per cent of
universities by the QS World University Rankings.